Download What are the most common ways we communicate?

COMMUNICATION SKILLS
What is
COMMUNICATION?
• Communication is exchange of
thoughts, messages, or information,
as by speech, signals, writing, or
behavior.
What are the most common ways
we communicate?
Written Word
• All communication methods are
important in training but our emphasis
will be upon the spoken word... since
70 % or all our communication efforts are:
misunderstood, misinterpreted, rejected,
disliked, distorted, or not heard (in the
same language, same culture)!
The Goals of Training
Communications:
To change behavior
To get and give
Information
To persuade
To get action
To ensure understanding
Communication is the process of sending
and receiving information among people…
Feedback
receiver
SENDER
sender
RECEIVER
All messages do not reach the
receiver due to “distortion”
Feedback
Receiver
Sender
Distortion
What causes distortion or the barriers
to understanding/listening?
•
•
•
•
•
•
Perceptions
Language
Semantics
Personal Interests
Emotions
Inflections
•
•
•
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•
Environment – noise
Preconceived
notions/expectations
Wordiness
Attention span
Physical hearing problem
Speed of thought
• Listening takes. . .
– concentration and energy
– curiosity and open-mindedness
– analysis and understanding
• Speaking requires. . .
– sharp focus
– logical thinking
– clear phrasing
– crisp delivery
What we need to understand is…..
Effective Listening
Behaviors that support effective listening
o Maintaining relaxed body posture
o Leaning slightly forward if sitting
o Facing person squarely at eye level
o Maintaining an open posture
o Maintaining appropriate distance
o Offering simple acknowledgments
o Reflecting meaning (paraphrase)
o Reflecting emotions
o Using eye contact
o Providing non-distracting environment
Behaviors that hinder effective listening
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
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Acting distracted
Telling your own story without acknowledging theirs first
No response
Invalidating response, put downs
Interrupting
Criticizing
Judging
Diagnosing
Giving advice/solutions
Changing the subject
Reassuring without acknowledgment
How can we improve our listening &
facilitation skills?
PARAPHRASING
SUMMARIZIN
G
Restating what
another has said
in your own
words
Pulling together
the main points
of a speaker
QUESTIONING
Challenging
participants to
tackle & solve
problems
Paraphrasing…try it out!
Paraphrasing is simply
restating what another person
has said in your own words.
The best way to paraphrase is
to listen carefully to what the
other person is saying.
Paraphrase often so you
develop the habit of doing so.
Practice some of the following
techniques on your colleagues.
Use initial phrases such as:
In other words…
I gather that…
If I understand what you
are saying…
What I hear you saying is…
Pardon my interruption, but
let me see if I understand
you correctly…
Summarizing…try it out!
Try out these summarizing phrases:
“If I understand you correctly,
your main concerns are…”
“These seem to be the key
ideas you have expressed…”
Summarizing pulls
important ideas, facts or
data together to establish a
basis for further discussion
and/or review progress.
The person summarizing
must listen carefully in order
to organize the information
systematically.
It is useful for emphasizing
key points.
Questioning…a critical facilitation skill
There are two basic types of questions:
1. Closed questions
generally result in short yes/no or other one word
answers. They should be used only when you want
precise, quick answers. Otherwise, they inhibit thought.
2. Open-ended questions
invite an actual explanation for a response. Questions
that begin with “how”, “what” and “why” are typical.
Other helpful techniques to foster
communication (both verbal and non-verbal)…
Nod Your Head
Maintain eye
contact
Repeat the last
word or two of the
prior speaker
Keep an open
body position
Make encouraging
statements
Repeat a sentence
or part of one
Questions
Thank You